Carlos Queiroz appointed new Egypt manager

Egypt pick the well-traveled Portuguese as Pharaohs' boss ahead of busy schedule of WCup qualifiers, Arab and African cups

Carlos Queiroz has been appointed the new manager of the Egypt national team. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Egypt on Wednesday named Carlos Queiroz as manager on Wednesday, replacing Egyptian Hossam El Badry who was sacked earlier this week.

The appointment of the well-travelled Queiroz, 68, was announced by the Egyptian Football Federation.

The Portuguese coach takes over as Egypt sit on top of Africa’s World Cup qualifying Group F after narrowly beating Angola 1-0 at home and salvaging a 1-1 draw away against Gabon.

The Pharaohs are not in action again until October when they take on Libya, the other team in the group, in a double-header. They play their return matches against Gabon and Angola in November before playing in the Fifa Arab Cup in December.

Egypt travel to Cameroon in January for the Africa Cup of Nations, which they won a record seven times.

Carlos Queiroz has replaced Hossam El Badry. EPA

El Badry, who had an unbeaten run in his two years in charge, was the target of mounting criticism from commentators and fans for Egypt's uninspiring form, his tactics and team selection.

He hit back saying the players have been exhausted after a long season.

His Portuguese successor brings to the Mohamed Salah-led Pharaohs vast and diverse experience in national and club football.

Winning the U-20 World Cup with his native Portugal in 1989 is possibly his biggest achievement. He was moderately successful with Sporting Lisbon in the early 1990s. He also coached Real Madrid for a single season in 2003-04 and worked for four seasons as Alex Ferguson’s assistant at Manchester United.

At the national level, Queiroz had stints as manager of Portugal, Colombia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the UAE. He was Iran’s manager for eight years between 2011 and 2019.